Kargath Bladefist is the Warchief of the Fel Horde and Chieftain of the Shattered Hand clan. He earned the sobriquet "Bladefist" after he cut off his own left hand to escape ogre captivity, replacing it with a deadly scythe [The Bladefist],[1] and becoming the Chieftain of the Shattered Hand. He has been referred to as the merciless one.[2]

Contents

Biography

Slavehood

Kargath Bladefist was raised a slave by the ogres of Gorian Empire. He was imprisoned and held beneath Highmaul for many years. Striving for his own freedom, he became a gladiator fighting in the Highmaul arena. The price to earn his own freedom was to take one hundred orcish lives while fighting in the arena. Having won every battle against his opponents, Kargath marched out of Highmaul, only to discover the promise of freedom to be a lie. Kargath was thrown in a dungeon beneath the arena, and desperately severed his hand, which was bound by shackles, in frustration and rage. The other orc slaves, seeing his resolve, followed in his footsteps and did the same. They followed Kargath in his uprising against the ogres and helped him slay the emperor. Kargath showed the severed head of the emperor to his followers, and they raised their severed hands, armed with blades, cheering at him. This moment marked the birth of the Shattered Hand clan.[3]

Before the Horde

Kargath led his new clan to establish a village within the dense, swampy forests of the Spires of Arak called Bladefist Hold. Much like the rest of his clan, he took great pleasure in causing pain to others, and to himself. Based on his alternate counterpart's actions, it can be presumed that the Shattered Hand's relations with the local arakkoa were... less than peaceful.

Later years

Kargath was present at the Kosh'harg celebration in Nagrand.[4] and was later one of the original members of the Shadow Council, and the only non-warlock to reach the Inner Circle[citation needed]. As part of the council he watched over the alliance with ogres and rebellious clans.[5]

When the first wave of clans went through to Azeroth, Bladefist begrudgingly stayed behind in Draenor, under the uneasy rule of Ner'zhul the Shaman, who only remained in power through his numbers – and the always-looming threat of the ogre mageDentarg. When the Bleeding Hollow clan returned to Draenor many years later, Bladefist immediately volunteered to send his clan through to Azeroth,[6] hoping to gloriously slaughter the humans to avenge his fallen or captured brothers and sisters.

Beyond the Dark Portal

He alongside Grommash Hellscream were the first to hear and join Ner'zhul's plan. Once the Alliance had invaded Draenor, they established a foothold and constructed Honor Hold. From there, they raided Hellfire Citadel, thinking that Ner'zhul resided there. However, Kargath and Dentarg had been left there to distract the Alliance while Ner'zhul attempted to open the rifts to other worlds at the Black Temple. Alleria's elven rangers killed the sentries of the citadel and opened the gates, allowing the Alliance to storm in and butcher most of Kargath's clan. Dentarg was destroyed by Khadgar in that fateful battle. Nonetheless, Kargath understood that he had been left there to die, and managed to pull a few of his forces back and escape. Hoping to intercept the Alliance and continue his service to the Horde, he traveled to Nagrand and attempted to convince Greatmother Geyah to lend him warriors. She refused his request, as the village was one of the sick. Angered, Kargath stormed off. Realizing that he had too few soldiers to make a difference, he instead decided to abandon the struggle and reclaim Hellfire Citadel one day in the future, when he was stronger and more prepared.[7]

Description

From the Warcraft II: Beyond the Dark Portal manual: A razor-sharp scythe setting in place of his severed left hand, Kargath is always willing to engage in frenzied combat. His ruthless tactics and single-mindedness have earned him the Chieftainship of the feared Shattered Hand clan. Like Hellscream, Kargath waits only for the time his clan is unleashed upon the unsuspecting humans to engage in massive bloodshed.[6]

When Ner'zhul opened the portals to numerous world in Draenor the world began to tear apart, Grom Hellscream realizing that Ner’zhul’s mad plans would doom their entire race, rallied as many orcs as he could and escaped back to the relative safety of Azeroth.[8] In World of Warcraft there are orcs of the Shattered Hand clan serving Thrall's Horde, while Kargath is in Outland. The warriors of the Shattered Hand in Azeroth are a part of the orcs that crossed with the Warsong clan and Bleeding Hollow clan before the Dark Portal exploded. However in the videogame Warcraft Adventures Kargath appeared in Azeroth leading the Shattered Hand clan. He was one of the clan leaders, along with Doomhammer, and Kilrogg Deadeye that met at a convocation or council on an Altar of Storms. Thrall apparently convinces them to form the Horde again.[9]

However this never happened in the lore as the game was cancelled and hasn't been referenced in any source. It does not appear in the Lord of the Clans novel. More recently, it has been confirmed that he was not trapped on the Azeroth side of the portal, and is still in Hellfire Citadel, commanding the Fel Horde, and being commanded by the Illidari.

Despite his corruption into a fel orc, Kargath is regarded as a highly respected member of both the original Horde and among orc society. Though most orcs view his fall as unfortunate, they remember the proud warrior he once was. This is evident in Nazgrel's words at the end of [70D] The Will of the Warchief; "In his prime, Kargath Bladefist was a fine warrior, a hero and example to his people. His death is a blow to us all, but especially to Warchief Thrall. Whatever happened to him in his final days, we should not forget the orc Kargath once was, nor the lessons to be learned from his downfall." Based on this, it's clear that the Horde never discovered that Kargath was a member of the Shadow Council.

Originally Kargath severed his hand upon reaching the rank of grunt. Lords of War slightly retconned it.

Despite being described as a 'scythe' the weapon on his left hand far more resembles an axe.

Kargath was the first playable character from Warcraft II to be a dungeon boss in World of Warcraft.

Speculation

This article or section includes speculation, observations or opinions possibly supported by lore or by Blizzard officials. It should not be taken as representing official lore.

There are currently no sources that would reveal the exact time of the Fel Horde's creation and when exactly Kargath and his Shattered Hand orcs became fel orcs. It could be either when Magtheridon took control of Outland or during the reign of Illidan Stormrage.

Tools

In other languages

Content is available under CC BY-SA 3.0 unless otherwise noted.World of Warcraft content and materials are trademarks and copyrights of Blizzard or its licensors. All rights reserved. This site is a part of Curse, Inc. and is not affiliated with Blizzard.